Lent always begins with an explosion of religious fervor. In our secular age, it has become common to refer to large numbers of Catholics as Christmas and Easter Catholics. They show up for Mass twice a year; but I suspect that the number of Catholics who observe Ash Wednesday is much greater. At first, this might seem surprising, since Ash Wednesday is not an important feast day, and there is certainly no obligation to receive ashes or attend Church that day. Yet churches get slammed on this mid-week workday, and people who are the most irregular of churchgoers openly give witness to their faith by wearing a cross of ashes on their forehead. What is the attraction? I think it is two-fold

First, Ash Wednesday is personal. The big feasts of the Church, like Christas, Easter, and Pentecost, are about God’s grand design for humanity; but receiving ashes is personal. “Remember that you are dust and into dust you shall return.” Ash Wednesday is a reality check. I need to get my act together. The fact that our outer shell will one day turn to dust is not necessarily depressing. It can actually be liberating. We live in  a death denying culture, where with the right diet and exercise program and some strategic plastic surgery, we can avoid coming face to face with death. Ash Wednesday strips away our denial, and it does so by offering us some genuine good news. If I lay aside my pathetic attempts at immortality and stop trying to hid my weakness, my vulnerability, and my sinfulness, then God can give me what I most desire—real immortality. The truth really can set me free.

Second, Ash Wednesday provides us with a physical connection with Christ and the Church, even if we no longer attend Mass or feel worthy to attend Mass or take communion. In one of the most touching scenes of the Gospel of Mark, a woman who has been suffering from hemorrhages for twelve years, says, “If I could but touch the hem of his garment, I shall be cured.” Between the former Catholics wo do not belong to any faith community and those who go to church on a fairly regular basis, there are lots of non-churchgoers who still identify as Catholic. Being signed with ashes every year is a way of affirming that I am still connected to Christ and that I am still part of the Catholic Church, even if I am on the church property for only a few minutes. Some may receive ashes from a minister at a train stop who may not be Catholic. But for that individual that day, those ashes s show that they still belong to Christ.

We “churchy” folks know that this week’s ashes are not meant to be a one-time hit. Ash Wednesday is meant to be the beginning of a journey of prayer, penance, and charity—not just to prove that we can do it, but to lead us a deeper commitment to serving God and neighbor. Lent began as the final season of preparation for those who would be baptized at Easter. Since we are all constantly in need of conversion to Christ, the Lenten practices and disciplines were extended to the whole church. This year we are blessed to have 14 adults and 4 younger candidates for the Easter sacraments. A great Lenten practice would to keep them in your daily prayer. Included in this week’s bulletin is the schedule of our Wednesday Evenings of Faith. Learning something new or experiencing something new is an excellent way of jumpstarting our faith journey. We also have a Scripture Study that will meet on Monday evenings and we will have Stations of the Cross after the 12:10 Mass on the Fridays of Lent These are meant to be helps on our Lenten journey, but deep down we all know what most needs to change in our life and what we need to do to address it. And Ash Wednesday is a day to be extra friendly to the strangers who appear. They may just need an invitation to join us on the journey to Easter.

One specific sacrifice I am asking you to make this Lent is to complete the Disciple Maker Index. This can be easily accessed on the website printed in our bulletin or more easily by clicking on the link on our homepage. There are also paper copies in the back of church. This is a survey which parishioners in all parishes in the Archdiocese are being asked to participate, beginning Ash Wednesday.  We took part in this survey three years ago, and the results were very helpful in exposing the weaknesses in our parish and the areas we need to improve. The results will only mean something, though, if enough people participate. So, think of it as a gift your are offering the parish. You are helping us move forward as a faith community rooted in Christ.

                                          Fr. Joe